Are there desert lands and wastelands mentioned in the Rgveda? Yes! These Dhanvas (deserts and wastelands) connect Ṛgveda to the drying up of Sarasvati by1900 BCE, soon after the onset of the global 4.2 kilo-year dryness-event that affected all worldwide civilizations. This 4.2 K event hit us during the 8th Mandala Period of the Late Rgvedic Period in around 2200 BCE. This is one of the many reasons why Ṛgveda cannot be dated to far-fetched dates like 12,000 BCE or 22,000 BCE, etc. The Early Rgvedic Period started in 3300 BCE when a rain-fed Sarasvati flowed from the Himalayan Shivaliks north of Haryana to the Rann of Kutch in northern Gujarat. The Rann of Kutch was then a sallow navigable sea. Boats and ships brought enormous wealth from other civilizations to the Rgvedic / Sarasvati Sindhu Civilization through the Rann of Kutch, which passed through Sarasvati, Sindhu, and their tributaries to different regions of the Vedic Civilization, which is today Gujarat, Sindh, Punjab, and Haryana and their peripheries. Dholavira in the Khadir Bet island, located inside this shallow sea, grew into a major seaport and port city by the Mature Harappan Period. Dholavira is identified as Dvaraka. The Rann of Kutch ancient sea is recognised as the Puranic Kshira Sagara. The wealth generated through the sea and land trade passing through Rann of Kutch and Dholavira resulted in the notion of Kshera Sagara Mathana, which resulted in colossal wealth creation (Lakshmi) and other items of prosperity (Kaustubha) and health (Amrita). The Late Rgvedic Period ended by 1900 BCE with the composition of the Rgvedic 10th Mandala. It was also the end of the Mature Harappan Period. Many wastelands, deserts, and dry lands are mentioned in Rgveda during these periods. Camels are mentioned as transport animals during this period. They were used to travel along the arid lands. The Late Rgvedic Period mentions three major drylands and four seas where sea trade happened. The decline phase (the Late Harappan Period) is described in the Puranas as the declining Treta, Dvapara, and Kali Yugas. Historically, the Rama Era was 1950-1850 BCE, and the Pandava Era was 1850-1750 BCE.
Have you taken into account the tectonic shift/movement of Sutlej away from the Saraswati (into the Yamuna?) ?
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3moThis is why the terminus of Rgveda cannot be any random exaggerated free-floating date like 12,000 BCE or 22,000 BCE, etc. It must be anchored to the global 4.2 Kilo Year dryness event of 2200 BCE. This 4.2 KY event of 2200 BCE corresponds to the 8th Mandala of Rgveda. Soon enough, by around 1900 BCE, the Sarasvati River had partially dried up in its middle. In 1793 BCE, Balarama reported about this partial dried-up Sarasvati River during his journey from Dvaraka (Dholavira inside Rann of Kutch) to Kurukshetra (Northern Haryana)